Today in History
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2011 The largest tornado outbreak ever recorded hits the U.S.
During the outbreak, which included 358 confirmed tornadoes, 348 people were killed across six states.
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1983 The German news magazine, Stern, announces discovery of Hitler’s diaries
The documents were later revealed to be forgeries, sparking one of history’s most spectacular media scandals. According to experts, Hitler never kept a diary.
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1974 In Portugal, the fascist Estado Novo is overthrown in a bloodless coup
The leftist Carnation Revolution was led by military officers and supported by widespread civil resistance.
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1953 The double helix structure of DNA described for the first time
That day, Francis Crick and James D. Watson published their ground-breaking research on the molecule containing genetic information in Nature.
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1859 Construction of the Suez Canal begins
The waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea became the shortest sea link between Europe and Asia.
Births On This Day, April 25
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1940 Al Pacino
American actor, director
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1928 Cy Twombly
American/Italian painter, sculptor
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1917 Ella Fitzgerald
American singer
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1874 Guglielmo Marconi
Italian businessman, inventor, developed Marconi’s law, Nobel Prize laureate
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1599 Oliver Cromwell
English general, politician
Deaths On This Day, April 25
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2008 Humphrey Lyttelton
English trumpet player, composer
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2006 Jane Jacobs
American/Canadian journalist, author, activist
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2001 Michele Alboreto
Italian race car driver
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1944 George Herriman
American cartoonist
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1744 Anders Celsius
Swedish astronomer
